Despite these chilling facts, many of us are financially involved in this shady industry via our banks, pensions, savings and insurance schemes.

Time to divest!

The pension funds of workers and the institutions we bank with have hundreds of millions of dollars invested in private prison companies; by directly holding corporate shares and through index and mutual fund investments.

Yet at the same time, unions are on the frontline of the fight against privatisation of prisons and other public services.

We need to lead by example by ensuring we are no longer financially connected to these corporations.

This is why Public Services International, in coalition with many of our affiliates, is launching our Pledge for Prison Divestment.

The Pledge: Our union will do all in our power to ensure the money of our members is not invested in private prisons.

To endorse the pledge, register to POP then click the endorse button at the bottom of this page.

What unions can do

Unions in the public and private sector often hold influence over the governance and investment decisions of their members' pension funds, soverign wealth funds and the institutions they chose to bank with. Many of these funds represent the largest pools of capital in the world.

While unions might not have full control, they can play a powerful role in creating the case for divestment, building the political pressure and mobilising their members around the issue.

For some, the union might have a seat on the board, allowing for internal lobbying for divestment.

For others, it might mean researching which major national banks are involved in financing private prisons, educating members on the issue and supporting existing campaigns for divestment.

Until now the Prison Divestment movement has been mostly limited to the United States. This is why Public Services International is coordinating a coalition of unions around the world who will pledge to do all in their power to ensure the money of their members are divested from these companies.

As workers and unions we must lead the fight against prison privatisation and profiteering from pain by ensuring we are not financially supporting this repugnant industry.

Private Prisons: Investment Risks

The American Federation of Teacher have produced a report on two major privateers: Core Civic and GEO Group. These corporations reap billions each year by jailing minority populations and exploiting the school-to-prison pipeline. Many AFT-linked pension funds have already divested from companies such as these.

News & resources
(4)

Danish pension funds PKA and Lærernes Pension take action to divest, while Velliv chooses engagement with firms to improve practices. The three pension funds had been highlighted in a Danish investigative report as having had investments – albeit relatively small – in US listed companies operating private prisons.

CEO Group and CoreCivic combined, account for nearly 85 percent of the private prison market in the United States. They are also run most of the Immigration and Custom Enforcement detention facilities, also called ICE detention centers.

The supervision of all offenders will be undertaken by the state in a major renationalisation of the probation sector. Only five years after introducing a widely derided programme of privatisation. Following years of damning criticism from MPs, inspectorates and former probation officers, the justice secretary, David Gauke, has decided to bring all offender management under the National Probation Service (NPS) by spring 2021.

CUPE Newfoundland (@CupeNL) denounces Dwight Ball, the premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, for planning to build a new prison using a ‘public-private partnership.’ “Naturally, Ernst & Young recommended using a public-private partnership. P3s= higher-cost private financing, ‘off book debts’ now that will mean less available funding in future years.”

2016

Oregon Education Association, representing pre-K to 12th grade teachers, passes a resolution to push for divestment of the Public Employee Retirement System (PERS) from prisons and their major investors.

Under the Obama administration, the Justice Department moved to phase the use of private prisons.

2017

President Trump, who received millions of dollars in campaign contributions from private prison companies, reverses plans to end federal prison privatisation.

New York City’s pension system becomes the first in the nation to fully divest from private prisons, dumping about $48 million worth of stock and bonds from GEO Group, CoreCivic Inc. (CCA) and G4S.

At its 2017 convention, the AFL-CIO adopted Resolution 25 that resolves, “AFL-CIO, its affiliates and state federations promote federal, state and local legislation, policies and practices that end the for-profit pipeline of correctional facilities or services.”

2018

The California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) voted to divest more than $12 million from GEO Group and CoreCivic.

2019

JP Morgan Chase agrees to stop financing the prison industry.

Wells Fargo announces it will also cut ties with the prison industry.

2020

The Ethics board of the Norwegian state oil fund (among the largest in the world) puts G4S on a human rights blacklist, withdrawing tens of millions of dollars in funding. The board cited "“unacceptable risk of the company contributing to systematic human rights violations."

The case for divestment
(2)

The American Federation of Teacher have produced a report on two major privateers: Core Civic and GEO Group. These corporations reap billions each year by jailing minority populations and exploiting the school-to-prison pipeline. Many AFT-linked pension funds have already divested from companies such as these.

This is the AFT’s second report in a two-part series highlighting the investment risks to pension funds and other investors whose portfolios contain investments in the private prison industry or contractors who provide services to immigrant detention centers.

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